Five Things Brands Should Be Doing in Q4
3 minute read…
Every brand leader I’ve spoken to this summer has said the same thing: the world feels fast right now.
Consumers are moving quicker than most brands can keep up with, and the old playbooks aren’t cutting it anymore. In fact, the scariest thing I see? Most marketing leaders don’t actually know where they sit in their category today. They’re busy running campaigns, but blind to the cultural forces reshaping how people think, shop, and spend.
So as we head into the final stretch of 2025, I thought I’d share five things we at Unfound believe every brand should focus on in Q4. Not abstract theory. Not buzzwords. Just sharp, actionable shifts that will put you in a stronger position for 2026.
01 | Audit Your Category and Brand Perception
When was the last time you checked how people really see you? Not a quarterly tracker, but the conversations about your brand happening in group chats, TikTok comments, gym changing rooms - or in our case, in co-working spaces. The reality: smaller upstart brands are already shaping new behaviours in your space. They’re agile, they’re loud, and they’re stealing attention. If you’re not tuned in to what’s driving culture in your category, you’re not playing the same game.
A cultural audit forces you to confront this. Who’s winning trust? Who’s falling behind? And where do you actually sit in people’s minds? Do this now, and you’ll have the clarity to finish the year making smarter moves.
02 | Look Beyond Generations and Focus on Behaviours
Gen Z. Millennials. Gen Alpha. Gen Zalpha. I’m even hearing talk of Gen Beta now. These labels have become lazy shortcuts in our opnion. People don’t live in neat boxes defined by birth year, they live in cultures, communities, and behaviours.
A 21-year-old training for a marathon and a 40-year-old training for the same marathon probably care about the exact same things. But most brand strategies would split them apart. That’s where you lose relevance.
If you want to unlock growth, stop asking “How do we talk to Gen Z?” and start asking “What behaviours unite the people we want to serve?” That shift alone will change the way you build campaigns.
03 | Meet Your Next Customers Where They Already Are
Here’s a stat I love: 40% of young consumers now use TikTok as a search engine. That means before they Google, before they browse Amazon, they’re typing their questions into TikTok and trusting creators to answer them.
If you’re not visible in those moments, you don’t exist. That’s a painful discovery.
This isn’t just about TikTok, it’s about being culturally present in the places your next wave of customers are hanging out, swapping recommendations, and shaping taste. Whether that’s Discord servers, run clubs, pop-up events, or a particular subreddit, Q4 is your chance to get closer to them.
The question to ask is: is our brand visible in the places shaping its future right now?
04 | Make Your Content Memorable
Here’s the truth: nobody is waiting for your next campaign. People are drowning in content. The only work that cuts through is the work that feels human.
One of the sharpest ways to do this is nostalgia. Done right, nostalgia can make people stop scrolling, smile, and lean in. It’s not about being gimmicky, it’s about making people feel something that connects to your brand. Think of why Stranger Things reignited 80s culture, or why Nike still pulls out archive moments when they want to hit emotion hard.
But it doesn’t have to be throwback-driven. Storytelling that taps into what your audience values – sustainability perhaps, belonging, wellness, ambition, speak the dreamer in people. This will do the same job. Q4 should be less about chasing impressions and more about creating moments people remember
05 | Stay Agile, Stay Brave
The brands that win are the ones that move quickest. Not reckless, but agile.
Test and learn should be your focus in Q4. If a cultural moment pops, be the brand that jumps on it within 48 hours. If a campaign underperforms, pivot the creative in real time. The slow ones get forgotten.
And don’t be afraid of creative risks. Look at Liquid Death - they’re selling water, but by being weird, bold, and culture-first, they’re outselling household names. There’s a lesson there: relevance isn’t found in playing safe, it’s found in moving fast and backing big ideas.
The common thread across all five points? Cultural relevance. If you don’t understand where culture is heading, you can’t connect.
That’s why at Unfound we built Newwave™ - our cultural insights platform that helps brands decode the shifts happening in their category and map how they’re really being perceived. It’s not theory, it’s live intelligence. So as you plan your Q4 and set yourself up for 2026, ask yourself: Do we know the cultural forces shaping our category right now? Do we know how we’re really perceived? Do we know who our next customers are and what’s shaping their decisions?
If the answer is no, then this is the time to find out.
Q4 belongs to the bold, the informed, and the agile. Please don’t get left behind. Businesses like ours are here to help.
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